9 Weird Dream
by redcloudedleopard
Summary: Johnny has a little nightmare. This is a variation of "Trial by Fire". Warning: Indication of blood found here. Read at own risk. Inspired by a dream I myself had last night! Is it seriously by God's grace that I had a fanfic to write to unbore me today?


Either this was a replay of some hazy memory. Or, I was dreaming. A stupid dog collar that nullified my powers felt tight around my neck. The Angry Smurf (aka Blue Guy) was at it again; I couldn't believe my ears could take it. He jabbed a finger at me while yelling stuff I couldn't understand. Probably some _alien dialect._ Reed was on an elevated stand, also speaking alien to the Blue Guy. _Did nerds know that much?_ It scared me.

When I turned my head, I was shown some awesome videos: The very awesome me blasting an annoying alien robot machine. Looks like Blue Guy didn't like that. Well, too bad for him; I couldn't hold back my arsenal of chuckles. Actually, there were more of those videos that followed, & I got the message clearly. Angry Smurf played the angry judge today._ Still, was I really the villain here?_

"Very well. If you are ever to see your home planet again, the Human Torch must prove himself worthy: through a test," Blue Guy told Reed. I was listening. The whole crowd, filled with other smurfs, got real loud. "Bring it on, Angry Smurf! I ain't afraid of any test!" I yelled. Yadda yadda yadda...the blabbering alien wouldn't call it quits.

A freaky string of laughs was in the air, of course, coming out Angry Smurf's mouth. My teammates were surprisingly quiet. Wasn't Sue gonna think something up? Or wasn't Brick Head gonna motivate us all? Even Reed had a shut mouth..hmmm...Then I spun round to see the unexpected. Brick Head, Sue & Reed's eyes were all glowing white. It didn't occur to me that Dr. O & Zed were with us, too. Too bad they're eyes glowed white too. I wouldn't tell anyone, but already I missed Zed's eyes. She looked like some totally different being now. _& __I think I was the only sane one in that stadium._ Blue Guy almost jolted me when he said_,  
_

"I have received word about your..._prowess_..in what the earth dwellers call 'car racing'. The Kree empire expresses similiar interests in such a sport..."

The next second, everything went white - that happened when we first appeared in the stadium. Now I was standing in front of a really weird racecar; guess what? It had no wheels. _Lame indeed! _They looked super sharp at the tip, & were coloured flashy blue, green, & white. There were lines of blinding blue lights on the sides & window borders. I stood beside my 'insane' teammates in a straight line. Their eyes were still a bright white. Never mind..They had their own racecars positioned in front of them too. You know what was lamer?_ Each car looked exactly the same. Did these aliens have taste? Or brains, to start with?  
_

"The rules applied to Kree pod racing are known for their simplicity," said Blue Guy to me with an eerie look decorating his ugly face (yes, Brick Head was prettier than him), "To earn the freedom of yourself & your friends, you & only you are required to be _first_ to cross the end mark of the track."

"That's it?" I guffawed. It was fun having my own turn to jab a finger at the bad guy. "Just you? Versus all _six _of us?" I added with style.

"It is not just I. Your friends have taken the side of the Kree, so long as their mind control devices each remain intact," he thundered. Oh. That explained the creepy pairs of eyes now staring at me. Stupid Kree empire with their freaky science. Thankfully, Reed didn't come close to that sort of 'freaky'.

"Do you forfeit?" Angry Smurf asked. The whole place waited for me to answer. "Count me in," I tried to say the best I could.

We all strapped on helmets; I so should've brought mine along - Blue Guy wore his own helmet which, I admit, made him look like a top-notch racer. That didn't stop me from savouring the moment. Racing: my passion. No one could rip that away from me. I just hoped the lucky stars would get me to the finish line first..

A blaring noise was the signal for us to start. Ugh, aliens couldn't even count to three to start a race. But I had a head start, pumping the fuel in both the car & my body with my mind. Super! I was way in front of everyone. Angry Smurf's car-without-wheels shone brighter than the rest but it didn't scare me. I was good at telling myself to shut up if I began thinking about getting us all annihilated if I lost. Funny thing was, did I ever speed through a circuit this fast? It never felt so good before...I found a cool lever that made the car go TURBO if you balanced it out with the accelerator & other gear. Each time I tried it out, I saw a bright blue flash in my rear view mirror. The rear exhaust pipe was releasing blinding energy pulses or something.

The race circuit wasn't too bad. New York streets were perfect training ground for this area. Some turns were kinda cutting & sharp but _really, really_ fun to navigate. I let loose & cheered myself on until I thought my lungs were bursting. One thing's for sure: a race was about the race, NOT the finish line.

Out of randomness or something, Zed entered my head. Not the image of her, but something she told me days back, _"You have no idea what training can do to your body."_ She had laughed confidently when she said that. A light bulb switched on in my brain: maybe my super speed was because of the everyday training! What else explained my super senses, how easy it was to push & pull gears with my stronger arms, & press the accelerator with a more powerful lower body? For some weird reason I couldn't wait to tell her that whatever she said really worked. I'd do that if her eyes returned to the pretty golden colour that made her face shine.

Suddenly, Blue Guy caught up with me. Uh-oh. Ben & Zed were on my tail too. Their faces were nothing but angry, seriously. I couldn't hurt them. Angry Smurf was a meanie alright - he smashed both Ben & Zed into the side walls of the tunnel we were in. He hit them so hard, I could hear the crashing sound above my awesome roaring engine. Still, I pressed on to win now. To beat Angry Smurf. When I did, we'd all be outta outer space & be back on tarmac roads.

But Zed appeared in a flash. Her eyes were back to normal! Brick Head was the blue-eyed Thing again. Perhaps Angry Smurf caused them to hit their heads till the mind control machines got faulty. I had a millisecond to see that Blue Guy was gonna smash into me anytime now. That didn't happen.

Zed's car rammed really hard into Angry Smurf's, & was spinning like crazy. Angry Smurf also lost control & his car lost speed. It couldn't move on._ Yeahhhh! You go, Zed! Wait - no! You're..you're gonna be hurt! _No kidding. Her car skidded & hit the curb; the sound was horrible. I still heard it after she had crashed & her car finally stopped. I hit the brakes too, doing an 180˚ before stopping. But Ben, who also slowed down to stick with me, shouted, "Hit the finish line, Match Stick! You gotta be champion to get us home!"

I followed what he said. Reaching top speed, I saw a bright sign with a dead end a little after it. First place was officially mine! That worry was outta the way. Now a deeper worry chewed at my insides: Zed. Moments passed before Ben's car drove to the same spot where I was. He stepped out - with Zed in his arms. _Oh man, _my mind screamed. Her superhero suit was torn, the lighter parts of it stained red. I couldn't gaze at her caramel eyes. They were shut tight. Her hair was a disaster (in a serious way). "She's out. But when we get home, we'll get some help," Brick Head encouraged me. Reed, Sue & Dr. O finally came to the finish line. They were horrified: at _what I'd done_. Toying around with alien machinery got my friend (& kung fu teacher) into a wreck. I wanted to thank her badly, but she couldn't hear me now. I looked down as they got all panicky, wondering how long it'd be before we'd get to New York Presbyterian Hospital. Then there was a bright light that swallowed us up._  
_

***

Two nurses came out to talk to me while I waited for the docs to clean Zed up. Luckily she wasn't an inch from..._dying_. I gulped when I thought of the 'd' word.

"Can I see her? Now? Tell me I can," I asked them almost angrily.

One nurse answered me, "No, Mr. Storm. Visiting hours are only at -" Nurse #2 elbowed her & looked at me in a creepy manner. I'd tell her to see herself in a mirror. She said, "Of course, Mr. Storm. Follow us." I think she liked me a lot but I couldn't waste a minute. My thoughts locked on Zed, & nobody else. I walked into a room with Zed sitting up on one of the beds. I walked toward her clumsily, but I was too...relieved...to care. Something about seeing her okay & all got me magnetized. Plus, I owed her a 'thank you' later. I hadn't forgotten that. It felt so right.

"What were you thinking?!" I barked, squeakily. How embarrassing. But..I couldn't help telling her - the poor girl on the hospital bed in front of me - my _exact _feelings. She was looking at a picture on the wall, with the words **"Help them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back"** on it. I realized something BIG. She had put life on the line so I could be champion racer. If things got uglier than now, that definitely meant she _wouldn't get her life back_. That made me wanna hurl. I'd be a fraidy cat to do crazy things like that.

I put a gentle hand on the small of her back, pulling her up quickly but with little force (she looked too breakable for me to feel comfy) . As I did, my same caring arm curled around her other shoulder; I pulled her nearer still & said, "Thanks for watching my back." My chin was on top of her head which leaned against my chest, like I wanted to protect her or something. I felt the absolute need to do that. Protect her from stupid old Angry Smurf. I told her,

"Oh, sweets, you could've…you could've been wiped out!" Did I just call her 'sweets'? _Why?_

"Hey, still breathing here," a weak laugh left her throat. Man, did she sound bad. She went on, "Okay, I'm sorry. I…didn't see this coming." My eyes drifted from the bandage protecting her neck to those around both her legs. I saw a red stain or two on some of the bandages, & half of me was dying to puke. Messing around with alien equipment was a no-no now.

"I should've let you practise with my model cars…," I grunted in frustration, before stammering a little, "Zed, I'm - I'm so sorry."

"Just watch the curiosity, Hotstuff. Then we'll all be kept alive," she said, & smiled._ Wow...., _I said in my head. Her one-sided smile. _Together with the caramel irises. Mmmm. _

_The best part? Listen to this: she finished her sentence, & KISSED ME. On the face, at the bottom of my cheekbone. "?!!!!" was the only thing my brain registered. After that, she smiled with the same eyes again. I forgot lots of things at that moment; the room, the alien car racing, & especially other girls like Frankie (who bothered my mind a lot) & the two nurses outside.  
_

I blinked in 100% shock, & surprisingly ended up in my dark bedroom. I checked the clock & it read 3:49A.M. _"What a dream,"_ I whispered.

But I think I wouldn't tell anybody in the morning...


End file.
